Brook Lopez has been a topic of discussion all offseason for the Milwaukee Bucks. After signing a two-year, $48 million contract last offseason as an unrestricted free agent, Lopez now finds himself making $23 million in the final year of his deal with the Bucks. That is why there have been trade rumors fixated on the Bucks center.
The market for centers across the league is small right now. In fact, the market as a whole is very quiet due to many teams making the moves they wanted to in free agency. The new first and second tax aprons have limited what certain teams are able to do, which is why players like Lopez, who is making over $20 million in a season, haven't generated all that much buzz.
Still, there have been questions about Lopez's long-term future with the Bucks, especially since he 36 years old and not getting any younger. With the offseason lingering on, Bucks general manager Jon Horst set the record straight on where the organization stands with their starting center, a player they view as a valuable part of their potential success heading into the 2024-25 season.
“First of all, rumors and chatter are what makes the league so interesting and so fun, so people are always going to speculate and talk about it. And I typically don’t talk about any of this stuff with the media, but I will say, because Brook is so core to who we are, we have zero intentions of trading Brook,” Horst told The Athletic's Eric Nehm. “Of course he has value around the league. That’s a credit to him. But we’ve not engaged in any real conversations about trading Brook. There are teams that have a lot of value and interest in him. It’s my job to take calls, receive calls, have conversations, but Brook has been and will continue to be core to who we are.”
A variety of rumors have been linked to Lopez this offseason regarding whether the organization would consider trading him to help fix their financial problems as a second apron team. Recently, ClutchPoints reported that it would come as a surprise to many around the league if the Bucks were to part ways with Lopez this offseason.
Even though Horst's job is to build a contending roster while also handling everyone's emotions, his words truly reflect the notion that Milwaukee doesn't intend on trading Lopez.
Will Bucks keep Brook Lopez?
As things currently stand, the Bucks have a payroll that exceeds $191 million, which is over $6 million above the second tax apron for the 2024-25 season. This means that Milwaukee faces major ramifications in terms of matching salaries in trades, not being able to aggregate salaries, and they are very limited in terms of moves they can make to pursue talent that becomes available during the season.
It appears as if the Bucks are confident in the team they have assembled and are comfortable with the idea of running things back, despite losing in the first round of the playoffs in back-to-back years.
Lopez has been a huge part of the organization's success, and he was a big reason why they were able to secure a championship in 2021. Since then, Lopez has continued to make a positive impact on the Bucks, yet the team has been unable to advance far in the postseason.
This is the main reason why Lopez, who also carries a hefty salary, was rumored to be on the trade block this summer.
Ultimately, trading Lopez isn't the solution for the Bucks. Khris Middleton has been banged up through the years, and this team has had trouble finding steady production outside of their starting rotation. Lopez has played his role perfectly, especially on defense, which is why Horst and the Bucks haven't shown much interest in moving him.
Due to the fact that he is in the final year of his contract and one of the oldest players in the league, it may not be surprising to see the Bucks as Lopez's final team.
“I hope that Brook retires as a Milwaukee Buck. That’s been the goal since we originally got him,” Horst continued. “His impact on our team defensively and rebounding is elite. It only gets better. It’s not declining. I mean, he’s an anomaly in how he just continues to get better and better and better.
“For Doc, who got to spend time with Brook personally last year, Brook holds an incredible value for Doc for what he does defensively and rebounding and offensively, the spacing he gives us, and especially Giannis, is unique.”
Horst also made sure to call Lopez a “core part” of the team when discussing the big man's future and potentially retiring with the Bucks.
For the time being, Lopez is remaining with the Bucks, and he will very likely be their starting center on opening night. How the first few months of the 2024-25 season go for the Bucks will be very telling as to whether they will make any significant changes to their roster ahead of the trade deadline in February.
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